Brandy Rayana Norwood (born February 11, 1979 in McComb, Mississippi), known professionally as Brandy, is an American rnb singer-songwriter, record producer, actress, television entertainer, film producer and as of 2010 rapper, Bran’Nu.
The RIAA ranks Norwood as one of the best-selling female artists in American music history, having sold over 8.5 million copies of her five studio albums in the United States and over 30 million records worldwide, to date. Additionally, she has won over 100 awards as a recording artist. In 1999, Billboard ranked Norwood among the top 20 of the top pop artists of the 1990s.
During the early production stages of her debut album, Norwood was selected for a role in the ABC sitcom Thea, portraying the twelve-year-old daughter of a single working mother, played by Thea Vidale. Broadcasted to mediocre ratings, the series ended only eight months after its premiere, but garnered her a Young Artist Award nomination for Outstanding Youth Ensemble alongside her co-stars. Norwood recalled that she appreciated the cancellation of the show as she was unenthusiastic about acting at the time and the taping caused scheduling conflicts with the recording of her album, stating: “I felt bad for everybody else but me. It was a good thing, because I could do what I had to do, because I wanted to sing.”
